Thrustmaster T.Flight Stick X

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We get on our hands on the first PS3 flight stick, does it live up to expectations or crash and burn?

By Scott Lowe

The launch of the Playstation 3 has been marked by stiff competition with the Wii dominating sales and the Xbox 360's comparatively vast catalog of titles. Exclusive titles for the PS3 have been few and far between and as a result, third party peripherals have been even fewer. As new and original titles begin to emerge and year-to-date sales start to increase due to recent price drops the console has gained the interest of many large manufacturers. Pelican recently announced the release of their newest line of AfterGlow controllers for the PS3 (read the full preview here) and renowned gaming accessory developers Thrustmaster also recently released the first flight stick for the PS3. The T.Flight Stick X boasts an impressively economical MSRP of $29.99 and a full list of features like on-the-fly button mapping and swappable configurations.

The T.Flight Stick X features complete PS3 and PC compatibility via driverless plug-and-play USB connection. Although not clearly noted, the T.Flight Stick X is also compatible with Mac games that feature flight stick support. The T.Flight Stick X connects effortlessly to all intended systems with little or no delay. When connected to the PS3, the T.Flight Stick X navigates the PS3 home screen with logical button defaults. One discouraging factor to using the Thrustmaster with the PS3, however, is it its relatively short cord. Users with a fair amount of distance between their PS3 and optimum gaming position will likely find the T.Flight Stick X's less than five feet of cord to be more than insufficient. A sturdy flat surface would also be ideal when using the T.Flight Stick X, although lap use works reasonably.

Straight of the box users will note the T.Flight Stick X's quality build. The stick is constructed from thick matte plastic. The stick has an adjustable resistance knob and a weighted base for added realism. The handgrip of the flight stick fits perfectly and conforms to every curvature of the hand. To an untrained or otherwise uninformed eye, the T.Flight Stick X looks like a run-of-the-mill PC flight stick and bears little or no PS3 insignia. The button layout is pretty standard for most flight sticks although there are more buttons than would ever be necessary for console use. The buttons do not indicate the corresponding PS3 controls but rather a series of confusing numbers. Users can identify the PS3 controls in the printed materials but stubborn, self-sufficient players such as myself will just feel it out. The buttons feature a nice, balanced pressure sensitivity as well as rounded shapes that allow for accurate and fervent tapping.

For the particularly picky, the T.Flight Stick features a relatively simple button mapping system. Users can swap button functions directly from the stick and save them to a custom profile that is readily swappable with the default layout. For added customizing and functionality, players can also utilize in game preferences to get the perfect fit. One notable problem with the overall controllability of the T.Flight Stick is the twist-motion left and right yaw controls. Most PS3 flight games rely on dual thumbsticks to control the pitch, roll and yaw functions. The twist motion on the Thrustmaster is intended to assume the position of the right thumbstick, however, was not recognized in some of our test titles. Another minor gripe of ours is the functionality of the PS3 home button--on the T.Flight Stick X the home button is represented by the mapping button and during our trials failed to bring up the home menu at any point.

Conclusion Overall, the Thrustmaster T.Flight Stick X is an exceptionally built flight stick. The construction seems apt to survive years of passionate abuse and the weight seems pretty solid. With exception of a few minor functionality issues the T.Flight Stick X performs well with little or no further tweaking. As more flight sims are released for the PS3, ardent aviators will likely turn to the Thrustmaster T.Flight Stick X for its quality and cost efficient design.